Hayden

Wesneski

Wesneski retired 18 in a row after a one-out single in the first. He left with two on in the seventh after an error and a walk, but Porter Hodge got out of the jam from there. It’s Wesneski’s first win in six starts this year. He did have two wins as a reliever, though those came in his first two appearances back in April; he had a 4.74 ERA in 43 2/3 innings over 20 appearances while losing his last five decisions.

Things couldn’t have gone much worse for Wesneski, who allowed a season-high five runs on Tuesday against the Phillies. Shortstop Trea Turner was responsible for the majority of that damage, as he took Wesneski deep twice while driving in three runs. Wesneski has struck out seven batters in back-to-back games and will carry a 4.14 ERA into his next start, which is set for Sunday against the Angels.

All three of the runs Wesneski allowed came on a pair of homers in the second inning. With a runner on, Michael Conforto took him deep for a two-run shot to put the Giants on the board. David Villar followed with a solo shot to go back-to-back. Wesneski retired all six batters in the third and fourth innings before his day was done. He struck out seven. The 26-year-old right-hander owns a 3.60 ERA, 1.16 WHIP, and a 44/16 K/BB ratio across 45 innings. He’ll likely revert to the bullpen for long relief duties.

It’ll be Hayden versus Hayden (Birdsong, the Giants’ pitcher making his MLB debut). Wesneski hasn’t thrown more than two innings since May 13, so this won’t be a particularly long start, especially if he doesn’t perform better than he has lately; he’s given up six runs and four homers over 7 1/3 innings in his last six appearances.

The writing was seemingly on the wall after Hendricks was torched for eight runs (seven earned) over 4 2/3 innings on Friday against the Pirates. The soft-tossing 34-year-old righty has struggled mightily this season to a disastrous 10.57 ERA, 1.99 WHIP and 25/11 K/BB ratio across 30 2/3 innings (seven starts). He’ll presumably operate in mop-up duty until further notice with either Ben Brown or Hayden Wesneski likely moving into Chicago’s rotation until Jordan Wicks is ready to return from the injured list.

The Cubs will start Shota Imanaga and Jameson Taillon against Atlanta on Monday and Tuesday, respectively, and a starter for Wednesday’s game hasn’t been announced. Wesneski has pitched well in his last three starts with a 2.20 ERA, but for now, he’s going to operate out of the bullpen which severely limits his fantasy potential.

Wesneski coughed up an early run, but managed to hang in there against Padres counterpart Dylan Cease, who simply out-dueled him during Wednesday afternoon’s showdown at historic Wrigley Field. He tallied three strikeouts and handed out only one free pass. The 26-year-old former pitching prospect has excelled of late, allowing three earned runs or fewer in three straight starts since joining Chicago’s starting rotation back on April 28. He’ll bring a sparkling 1.59 ERA, 0.88 WHIP and 17/4 K/BB ratio across 22 2/3 innings (five appearances, three starts) into a challenging road matchup on Tuesday against the Braves. He’s still too risky to trust in shallow mixed leagues, but he’s done enough to merit consideration in deeper formats.

He allowed three hits and walked two. Wesneski gave up five balls hit at least 100 mph today, yet they all turned into outs. He has a 0.54 ERA after two starts and two relief appearances, but with Justin Steele returning and Kyle Hendricks probably right behind him, it’s unclear if he’ll get another start.

The right-hander walked one and struck out three batters on the night. The Red Sox scratched out single runs against him in the first and third innings — both on RBI singles by Connor Wong. The 26-year-old hurler got eight swings and misses on 63 pitches on the night — five of those on his fastball that averaged 94.8 mph — while posting a CSW of 29 percent. With Jordan Wicks shelved, he’ll have an opportunity to stick in the Cubs’ rotation for at least a few weeks now. His next turn will come on Friday against the Brewers.

Ugh, that’s never good news. The 24-year-old southpaw is set to undergo further evaluation and is probably looking at a trip to the injured list as well. Hayden Wesneski will start in his place against the Red Sox on Sunday and could wind up with a regular spot in the rotation for a while if all goes well.